North Shore flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of North Shore
(Port Macquarie-Hastings, NSW) - 19.83 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
19.83 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to North Shore's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over North Shore
Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 2 Oct 2026
typical observed square 1 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 2,500 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
North Shore at a glance
How North Shore is zoned
Buying in North Shore? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.
Across its 19.83 km², North Shore is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 90% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 88% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 3 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is National Parks and Nature Reserves. The median lot measures about 788 m² across 313 parcels.
Who lives in North Shore
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the North Shore suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.
Socio-economic standing
ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.
Score 976, and decile 4 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of North Shore's 371 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Port Macquarie Surrounds, the wider ABS statistical area containing North Shore. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than North Shore itself.
5,244 in 2001 to 5,331 in 2025, up 2%.
Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.
North Shore data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Zoning | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 3 October 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific North Shore address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 87% of North Shore. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a North Shore lot.
See what's in the $9 report →North Shore planning - frequently asked
Is North Shore flood-prone?
About 90% of North Shore falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 36%.
Is North Shore bushfire-prone?
Around 88% of North Shore is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Port Macquarie-Hastings average of 93%.
Is North Shore under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 87% of North Shore, and over about 90% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 1,500 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 10 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in North Shore?
The dominant planning zone in North Shore is National Parks and Nature Reserves, though the suburb also includes Environmental Conservation and Primary Production.
Does North Shore have heritage-listed places?
North Shore has 3 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in North Shore?
Across 313 surveyed parcels in North Shore, the median lot size is about 788 m².
What is the population of North Shore?
At the 2021 Census North Shore had 371 usual residents, with a median age of 48 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Port Macquarie Surrounds statistical area, which contains North Shore, went from 5,244 people in 2001 to 5,331 in 2025, up 2%.
Is North Shore an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), North Shore scores 976 and sits in decile 5 of 10 nationally and decile 4 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in North Shore?
Median household income in North Shore was $1,478 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,381 for the typical suburb in Port Macquarie-Hastings. Median rent was $388 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,517 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside | 3.2 km | 74% | 78% |
| Limeburners Creek | 6.3 km | 74% | 99% |
| Fernbank Creek | 6.8 km | 87% | 91% |
| Blackmans Point | 6.8 km | 86% | 87% |
| Port Macquarie | 7.8 km | 38% | 52% |
| The Hatch | 9.1 km | 89% | 99% |
| Thrumster | 9.6 km | 35% | 86% |
| Hacks Ferry | 10.2 km | 100% | 98% |
| Rawdon Island | 11.2 km | 95% | 82% |
| Sancrox | 11.6 km | 33% | 92% |